Watkinsville GOP meeting features candidates for state party chairman

The four men vying for the chairmanship of the Georgia Republican Party attended a GOP forum in Watkinsville on Tuesday evening to seek support for their bids.

The men seeking the chairmanship are Alex Johnson, a DeKalb County attorney; John Watson, a former chief of staff to former Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue; Mike Welsh, who chairs the state’s 12th District GOP, and Michael McNeely, who is now the party’s vice chairman and, if elected, would be its first minority chairman.

The state GOP meets in Augusta on June 2-3, when delegates will choose a new chairman.

Whoever takes over from the current chairman, Athens businessman John Padgett, will face a challenge, according to former U.S. Rep. Paul Broun, a Republican who represented the Athens area in Congress for eight years before losing a 2014 bid for the U.S. Senate.

The challenge for a new state GOP leader, Broun said, is "to ensure we continue to elect Republicans in every office all across the state. Frequently when we have a Republican president, conservatives will go to sleep and think everything is OK, but it is not."

McNeely’s candidacy has drawn some attention because he is black.

"They are all talking about diversity in the party. It would be very new for Georgia and the South to elect a minority chairman," said McNeely spokeswoman Susan Meyers.

The gathering in Watkinsville was sponsored by the Conservative Republican Women of Northeast Georgia, which has members in Athens-Clarke, Barrow, Madison, Oglethorpe and Oconee counties.

The meeting allowed "people who are not involved in the process to see what is going on," said Joan Rhoden of Athens, a member of the group.

"Everything hinges on leadership. And that’s in business and politics. We are looking for a strong leader who recognizes the grassroots," Rhoden said.

Mike Bush, whose wife, Angela, chairs the women’s group in Madison County, said he wants Republicans to address the national debt.

"This will hurt all of us regardless of what side of the fence you’re on," he said.

Michael Strollo of Cumming attended the gathering as a candidate for first vice chairman of the state party. According to Strollo, the new GOP chairman should be focused on financing and fundraising.

Strollo also said he also wants the party to bridge the gap separating younger generations and the GOP.

The millennial generation "doesn’t ask for help and the GOP doesn’t reach out, so there is no communication," Strollo said. "I want to reach these people and say, ‘How can I help you?"

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